Meeting THE Swing Out Sister

Now THIS is fate, fate, fate!

I had to bring daughter C1 to the dentist over at the 5th Floor of Megamall for a long overdue checkup (2 cavities!!!). After that we had a mother-daughter bonding time — shopping for clothes and a quick lunch at Wendy’s.

I told her I wanted to pass Powerbooks to check some books I was hoping to buy. As we passed the ground floor Atrium, beautiful jazz music was playing. Being such a jazz lover, I was of course attracted to the fairly large crowd gathered around the makeshift stage. Ooooh, there was an autograph signing going on! Wonder who it is???

So we go to the front of the stage where a lady with dark hair and bangs was sitting, signing CDs and who should it be???? Swing Out Sister’s lead singer, Corinne Drewery.

Swing Out Sister is a British jazz group from the 80s. Their kind of music is my favorite kind of jazz — smooth, sultry and pop-ish enough for C1 to love Corinne’s style of singing! It is definitely jazz at one of its finest.

Before we knew it, I was buying their latest album, Beautiful Mess, and heading up the stage to personally meet Corinne and introduce C1.

If there was one thing missing in this whole afternoon adventure, it was that I had no camera with me to record the moment. But that’s OK. We went home with Corinne’s new album playing beautiful music for us.

Here’s a sample of Corinne’s jazzy style:

What Kind of Tree Are You?

Joy emailed this to me.

She is an Apple Tree and the description of her self was pretty accurate. Funny, the kind of tree I am was also a fairly accurate description of moi.

(This is me — a CEDAR TREE!)

Why not try this and let me know if the tree fits YOU!
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Find out first what kind of tree you are by referring to the birth dates given. Then look up the description of your tree.

Dec 23 to Jan 01 (Apple Tree)
Jan 01 to Jan 11 (Fir Tree)
Jan 12 to Jan 24 (Elm Tree)
Jan 25 to Feb 03 (Cypress Tree)
Feb 04 to Feb 08 (Poplar Tree)
Feb 09 to Feb 18 (Cedar Tree)
Feb 19 to Feb 28 (Pine Tree)
Mar 01 to Mar 10 (Weeping Willow Tree)
Mar 11 to Mar 20 (Lime Tree)
Mar 21 only (Oak Tree)
Mar 22 to Mar 31 (Hazelnut Tree)
Apr 01 to Apr 10 (Rowan Tree)
Apr 11 to Apr 20 (Maple Tree)
Apr 21 to Apr 30 (Walnut Tree)
May 01 to May 14 (Poplar Tree)
May 15 to May 24 (Chestnut Tree)
May 25 to Jun 03 (Ash Tree)
Jun 04 to Jun 13 (Hornbeam Tree)
Jun 14 to Jun 23 (Fig Tree)
Jun 24 only (Birch Tree)
Jun 25 to Jul 04 (Apple Tree)
Jul 05 to Jul 14 (Fir Tree)
Jul 15 to Jul 25 (Elm Tree)
Jul 26 to Aug 04 (Cypress Tree)
Aug 05 to Aug 13 (Poplar Tree)
Aug 14 to Aug 23 (Cedar Tree)
Aug 24 to Sep 01 (Pine Tree)
Sep 02 to Sep 12 (Weeping Willow Tree)
Sep 13 to Sep 22 (Lime Tree)
Sep 23 only (Olive Tree)
Sep 24 to Oct 03 (Hazelnut Tree)
Oct 04 to Oct 13 (Rowan Tree)
Oct 14 to Oct 23 (Maple Tree)
Oct 24 to Nov 11 (Walnut Tree)
Nov 12 to Nov 21 (Chestnut Tree)
Nov 22 to Dec 01 (Ash Tree)
Dec 02 to Dec 11 (Hornbeam Tree)
Dec 12 to Dec 21 (Fig Tree)
Dec 22 only (Beech Tree)

TREES (in alphabetical order)

Apple Tree (Love) — quiet and shy at times, lots of charm, appeal, and attraction, pleasant attitude, flirtatious smile, adventurous, sensitive, loyal in love, wants to love and be loved, faithful and tender partner, very generous, many talents, loves children, needs affectionate partner.

Ash Tree (Ambition) — extremely attractive, vivacious, impulsive, demanding, does not care for criticism, ambitious, intelligent, talented, likes to play with fate, can be very egotistic, reliable, restless lover, sometimes money rules over the heart, demands attention, needs love and much emotional support.

Beech Tree (Creative) — has good taste, concerned about its looks, materialistic, good organization of life and career, economical, good leader, takes no unnecessary risks, reasonable, splendid lifetime companion, keen on keeping fit (diets, sports, etc.).

Birch Tree (Inspiration) — vivacious, attractive, elegant, friendly, unpretentious, modest, does not like anything in excess, abhors the vulgar, loves life in nature and in calm, not very passionate, full of imagination, little ambition, creates a calm and content atmosphere.

Cedar Tree (Confidence ) — of rare strength, knows how to adapt, Likes unexpected presents, of good health, not in the least shy, tends to look down on others, self-confident, a great speaker, determined, often impatient, likes to impress others, has many talents, industrious, healthy optimism, waits for the one true love, able to make quick decisions.

Chestnut Tree (Honesty) — of unusual stature, impressive, well-developed sense of justice, fun to be around, a planner, born diplomat, can be irritated easily, sensitive of others feelings, hard worker, sometimes acts superior, feels not understood at times, fiercely family oriented,
very loyal in love, physically fit.

Cypress Tree (Faithfulness) — strong, muscular, adaptable, takes what life has to give but doesn’t necessarily like it, strives to be content, optimistic, wants to be financially in dependent, wants love and affection, hates loneliness, passionate lover which cannot be satisfied, faithful, quick-tempered at times, can be unruly and careless, loves to gain knowledge, needs to be needed.

Elm Tree (Noble-mindedness ) — pleasant shape, tasteful clothes, modest demands, tends not to forgive mistakes, cheerful, likes to lead but not to obey, honest and faithful partner, likes making decisions for others, noble-minded, generous, good sense of humor, practical.

Fig Tree (Sensibility) — very strong minded, a bit self-willed, honest, loyal, independent, hates contradiction or arguments, hard worker when wants to be, loves life and friends, enjoys children and animals, sexually oriented, great sense of humor, has artistic talent and great intelligence.

Fir tree (Mysterious) — extraordinary taste, handles stress well, loves anything beautiful, stubborn, tends to care for those close to them, hard to trust others, yet a social butterfly, likes idleness and laziness after long demanding hours at work, rather modest, talented, unselfish, many friends, very reliable.

Hazelnut Tree (Extraordinary) — charming, sense of humor, very demanding but can also be very understanding, knows how to make a lasting impression, active fighter for social causes and politics, popular, quite moody, sexually oriented, honest, a perfectionist, has a precise sense of judgment and expects complete fairness.

Hornbeam Tree (Good Taste) — of cool beauty, cares for its looks and condition, good taste, is not egoistic, makes life as comfortable as possible, leads a reasonable and disciplined life, looks for kindness and acknowledgment in an emotional partner, dreams of unusual lovers, is seldom happy with its feelings, mistrusts most people, is never sure of
its decisions, very conscientious.

Lime Tree (Doubt) – intelligent, hard working, accepts what life dishes out, but not before trying to change bad circumstances into good ones, hates fighting and stress, enjoys getaway vacations, may appear tough, but is actually soft and relenting, always willing to make sacrifices for family and friends, has many talents but not always enough time to use them, great leadership qualities, is jealous at times but extremely loyal.

Maple Tree (Independence of Mind ) — no ordinary person, full of imagination and originality, shy and reserved, ambitious, proud, self-confident, hungers for new experiences, sometimes nervous, has many complexities, good memory, learns easily, complicated love life, wants to impress.

Oak Tree (Brave) — robust nature, courageous, strong, unrelenting, independent, sensible, does not like change, keeps its feet on the ground, person of action.

Olive Tree (Wisdom) — loves sun, warmth and kind feelings, reasonable, balanced, avoids aggression and violence, tolerant, cheerful, calm, well-developed sense of justice, sensitive, empathetic, free of jealousy, loves to read and the company of sophisticated people.

Pine Tree (Peacemaker) — loves agreeable company, craves peace and harmony, loves to help others, active imagination, likes to write poetry, not fashion conscious, great compassion, friendly to all, falls strongly in love but will leave if betrayed or lied to, emotionally soft, low self-esteem, needs affection and reassurance.

Poplar Tree (Uncertainty) — looks very decorative, talented, not very self-confident, extremely courageous if necessary, needs goodwill and pleasant surroundings, very choosy, often lonely, great animosity, great artistic nature, good organizer, tends to lean toward philosophy, reliable in any situation, takes partnership seriously.

Rowan Tree (Sensitivity) — full of charm, cheerful, gifted without egoism, likes to draw attention, loves life, motion, unrest, and even complications, is both dependent and independent, good taste, artistic, passionate, emotional, good company, does not forgive.

Walnut Tree (Passion) — unrelenting, strange and full of contrasts, often egotistic, aggressive, noble, broad horizon, unexpected reactions, spontaneous, unlimited ambition, no flexibility, difficult and uncommon partner, not always liked but often admired, ingenious strategist, very jealous and passionate, no compromise.

Weeping Willow (Melancholy) – likes to be stress free, loves family life, full of hopes and dreams, attractive, very empathetic, loves anything beautiful, musically inclined, loves to travel to exotic places, restless, capricious, honest, can be influenced but is not easy to live with when pressured, sometimes demanding, good intuition, suffers in love until they find that one loyal, steadfast partner; loves to make others laugh.

 

 

I’m a Sucker for Underdogs!

Yes, I am a sucker for underdogs. It’s just me.

Of course, the underdog has to be one of decent stock and integrity. Someone credible. Someone vulnerable. Someone unable to fight on his/her own. And recently, another such person has caught everyone in the throes of controversy that has gotten incredible media mileage.

Brian Gorrell has captured the hearts and minds of bloggers and web surfers globally, including Pinoys (one of whom he accuses of having allegedly scammed him of his life savings of 70,000 dollars). Brian could not get it back and resorted to blogging in an attempt to force this Pinoy to hand his money back — money he desperately needs for his medicines. Brian has HIV.

I won’t go into detailed comments about what Brian claims he knows or what he blogged about. You can go to Brian’s blog and read all about it there.

brian-gorrell-2.jpg

But what is really core to all these is his exposure of what we already have a glimpse of — the huge abyss between the rich and the poor of our country and what perks it gives to the high and mighty, to the detriment of those who merely survive from day to day and learn to go without.

If, through Brian’s blog, we Filipinos can see the real view of our country (its good side as well as its sickening ills), maybe we can now be stirred to move towards changing society, help in whatever way we can to make life better for millions of our own, bring back honesty, integrity, good governance at every level of society, and give back the dignity of the Pinoy that has been stripped bare by countless scandals not just in government but also, apparently, in our high society circles.

Kitty Go’s amazingly candid interview was so refreshing. While being herself a socialite now based in HK, she shows the better side of what real high society should be made of — finesse, social concern, clean living, honest profession, etc. There are still many of those in this country. Those who use their money to engage in housing projects, set up foundations for education, for better provincial infrastructure, and so forth. It is the few who live like there was no tomorrow, indulging in wild lifestyles, liquor and drugs, living in their intoxicated world, engaging in corruption to continue building up their empire, who bring a bad image to high society (and government, as well).

Some creative person came up with an image which Brian posted on his blog. It does not look like it is copyrighted as it has “Team Brian” on it. So I am putting it up here as well.

Good luck to you, Brian. Many people are praying you stay healthy. Many are hoping you get back your money. Thank you for exposing what many in this country have known for some time now but never dared talk (or write) about.

nogucci.jpg

What’s In a Name? (lotsa laughs!!!!)

Ever since we were small, our family name (Tenefrancia) was always misspelled by people. The most common misspelling was Peñafrancia (after Our Lady of Peñafrancia) and it became a family pet peeve of sorts that we constantly had to spell out our name….until my Mom discovered a better way to deal with the situation.

She decided to take up a collection of all possible variations of our family name — misspelled — and turned it into a hobby.

By last count, I think she has assembled several hundred variations, including, would you believe…TONY FRANCIA!!!! And whenever she did an enumeration of new findings, we got such good laughs out of them. Believe it or not, she’s still going at it up to today.

Well, my married name now (Uymatiao) isn’t exactly the easiest or the shortest either. Once again, I am spelling and spelling and spelling. There are days when it does get to you and I just say to people especially in stores: “It’s JANE UY!!!” Now THAT they spell correctly immediately!

One day, years ago, I got an envelope from my Mom. She had sorted out used envelopes I had passed on to her for recycling and she painstakingly cut out all those which were misspelled. I remembered all the kicks we got out of her odd hobby so when I got those cut-out envelope labels with my own misspelled married name, I simply continued from where she left off. So here goes my list as of now. PLDT takes the cake for being the WORST speller!

1. Mrs. Jane E. Uymetiao (envelope from IRRI)
2. Ms. Mary Jane Uymatias (letter from a childhood friend)
3. G. Ugmatiao (name tag-ugggh!!!)
4. Mr. Jeffrey Uymachiao
5. Mr. & Mrs. Geoffrey Uy-matiao (nope, NO HYPHEN please!)
6. Oy matiaw (receipt from Savory Restaurant- HELLOOOO! Who would name their kid Oy!)
7. G. Diumateo (PLDT bill-ha?)
8. G Uymatel (PLDT bill – maybe they thought of Bayantel, no?)
9. E. Uymateo (PLDT bill)
10. G Matiao (PLDT bill)
11. J Yumatiao (PLDT bill)
12. G Uy Matias (PLDT bill)
13. U Ymatiao (PLDT bill)
14. J Uymapiao (PLDT bill)
15. Y Tiao (PLDT bill – come again????)
16. R Uy Matiao (PLDT bill – not 2 words; one word!)
17. J Yumadiao (PLDT bill)
18. J Tuimaeio (PLDT bill – grabe, pinahirapan pa niya!)
19. G Uy Matao (PLDT bill)
20. G Imacho (PLDT bill- sus!)
21. G Oymatiao (PLDT bill)
22. G Uymachao (PLDT bill)
23. G Alimachao (PLDT bill- *sigh*)
24. Jane T. Uymattad (from a stamp club)
25. Mr. & Mrs. Geoffray L. Uymatio (Catholic daily digest)
26. Mr. & Mrs. Geoffrey Uy Matiao (again….just one word please!)
27. Ms. Mary Jane T. Uymatyao (letter from a relative in the USA)
28. Mr. Geoffrey Mymatiao (letter from friend- ok lang, friends parin kami)
29. Ms. Jane Uymatia (hey, who dropped the last letter???)
30. Geoffrey L. Uymariao
31. Jane Uymattiao (from a friend – 1 too many T’s, my friend!)
32. Jane Uy Madiao (Reader’s Digest label)

So there! My own oddball collection of our misspelled name. Ha ha.

Have you ever had your name terribly misspelled? Be thankful if your last name is Go, Dy, Ong, Tan, Lim or something like that.

Abangan ang mga updates….kung meron pa…

(Updates)

1. Machao (on a bottled water receipt) – April 2008

 

 

Ready to Join Earth Hour Tonight?

Want to be part of the Manila Earth Hour 2008? Wish you could do something to generate awareness of climate change, energy conservation, saving Mother Earth?

TURN OFF YOUR LIGHTS BETWEEN 8-9 PM LATER TONIGHT!

This is a global campaign which Manila is part of. Mayor Atienza has already pledged to turn off lights along Roxas Blvd. My yoga friend Trin, who works for WWF (a major sponsor/supporter of Earth Hour) texted me earlier that they are having a countdown along CCP’s lawn in Roxas Blvd. at 7 PM.

For more details about Earth Hour, its objectives and cities participating, click HERE to read my earlier blog post.

It looks like there is a groundswell of support for this campaign, which is really heartwarming to see.

* When I went to get my sons’ report cards yesterday, I saw a large tarpaulin announcing Earth Hour

* Just today, I already received several texts announcing this and requesting people to join

* Good friend Aly plans a candlelit pizza dinner with the family

* Today, my daughter and I bonded at Boni High Street while waiting for our youngest who spent the afternoon with a classmate in Makati. There, too, the stores will be joining Earth Hour by turning off 50% of their lights.

* Here at home, it will also be lights out for an hour. Although we are going out for dinner, the househelp have already been asked to turn off all our lights.

I will be bringing my digicam along later just in case there will be camera moments relevant to Earth Hour.

Will you join us please?

 

 

iblog4: The Bloggers’ Summit

Are you an active blogger? Then come join the Manila bloggers’ summit on April 26!

Last year, about this time, I came across an announcement about iblog3. Imagine, it was already the 3rd year running and I never even heard of such a summit. So, curious me decided to go attend even if I knew absolutely no one in the crowd. My first blog was just weeks old then and I knew next to nothing about stuff they talked about (problogging, Google Adsense, SEO, podcasting — DUHHHH!!!)

By the end of the 2-day conference, I had a pile of business cards from bloggers: probloggers, media bloggers, personal bloggers, and even vloggers. Not only that, I came to know the faces behind the more famous blogs you come across, got more-than-I-could-digest blogging information and even won a raffle prize.

This year, it will just be a 1-day event but still packed with very useful topics you could bring back home for your own blogs. Best of all, it is FREE!!!

Date: April 26, 2008 (Saturday)
Time: 9am – 5pm thereabouts
Place: Malcolm Theater, College of Law, UP Diliman

It’s better to reserve early so that you are sure to get a kit with handouts and be enrolled in their mailing list.

Here are some useful links:

iblog4 homepage

Register for iblog4

List of iblog4 registrants

Since joining iblog3 laslt year, my blogging life has never been the same. I now have thispublic blog as well as a yoga blog, The Yogini from Manila (chronicles of my life as a budding yogini). I  joined several blogger events and now count some of these long-time bloggers as my good friends.

Hope to see you there!